Curating Beautiful Experiences: The Impact of Signage in Fashion Retail

21 March, 2023
Curating Beautiful Experiences: The Impact of Signage in Fashion Retail

The truth is, when people shop for a new pair of shoes or browse through racks of garments, they’re often looking for an experience as much as they are an update to their wardrobe.

That’s why, from high street to high fashion, retailers need to carefully curate their physical spaces to build brand identity and create memorable shopping experiences. One of the key ways brands can do this? With creatively designed and strategically placed store signage.
From LED lights to feature walls to digital solutions, well-designed signs give stores a unique look and feel that influences brand perception and makes customers more inclined to buy.

Different Types of Retail Signage

Whether a brand is a high street favourite or a high-end label, external shop signs play a crucial role as they’re often the first thing customers see. They help customers identify stores, drive foot traffic and give visual cues about the kind of products that are sold inside. Projecting signs are used to make sure shops can be seen as customers walk down a busy high street. For small businesses, memorable external signage is essential for claiming their location between well-known high street names.

In larger stores, wayfinding signs direct customers to different departments or towards tills and fitting rooms. Hanging ceiling rafts can highlight certain product categories, for example shoes, accessories or denim. This is particularly helpful for grabbing the attention of customers who are shopping with a certain product or occasion in mind.

Other signs advertise promotions, new campaigns or seasonal offers. We’ve seen a rise in fashion
retailers using digital signs to display this kind of content dynamically, sometimes using moving
images to show their apparel in action.

According to research by the Signage Foundation, signs have a significant positive impact on sales,
with over 60% of businesses reporting a 10% increase in sales by adding or updating their signs.

Different styles of Retail Signage

For many high street brands, signage is bold and punchy. After all, these stores need to be instantly recognisable in busy shopping areas and stand out from the competition – both inside and outside the front doors.

Creative signage in high street stores can take the form of bold wall treatments, feature signs and LED lights. We’ve seen a rise in fashion retailers tapping into the power of Instagram by installing attention-grabbing signs that become photo-snapping opportunities for customers.
Yet, too much in-store signage can overwhelm a potential customer as they enter and scan a store. Think about it: how many times have we, as shoppers, walked out of a store almost immediately because we feel overwhelmed? Signage should amplify the garments available, not distract from
them or drown them out. Minimalist signage can work for brands who want to stand out in a world of visual clutter. One study
has shown that, when it comes to visual merchandising, ‘neat, sparse, clean and spacious’ stores are
perceived as being associated with ‘high image’ or luxury.

This explains why so many high-end labels – from Balenciaga to Chanel – deploy signs sparingly in
their stores. Not only is the amount of signage limited, but the designs are often also boldly
minimalist.

Environmental Branding

When we talk about environmental branding, we mean taking the visual and emotive aspects of a brand and translating them into a physical space. In fashion retail, this means creating stores – and a shopping experience – that reflects the unique brand image and really connects with the target demographic.

Carefully curating a certain look and ambiance in-store is particularly crucial for fashion retailers. In an
industry that’s all about aesthetics, it’s important to strike the right note; fashion consumers are often
buying into a brand as much as they are investing in a new item of clothing. So, from staff uniforms to product displays to signage, it’s all about curating stores that build brand identity. Signage, from the first external sign customers see to the wayfinding signs that lead them to lock their purchase, has a huge impact on the look and feel of a store.

High-end and high street fashion retailers alike are tapping into the power of digital signage to attract customers and enhance their shopping experience. From displaying breath-taking digital artworks, to projecting patterns and lights onto the walls themselves, we’re seeing brands using digital signage in increasingly creative ways.

For example, luxury brand Stella McCartney recently installed large mosaic digital video walls in the windows of 11 of its flagship stores. These stunning displays grabbed pedestrians’ attention and introduced customers to new collections. Other digital signage is being used for more practical means. For example, some stores are now using digital signs fitted with sensors to show how many fitting rooms are available and to tell queuing
customers when to enter. In larger stores, interactive digital signage is being used to help shoppers locate specific items or even make returns.

Taking it a step further, one firm is developing augmented-reality technology to allow consumers to virtually try on clothes to see themselves in any outfit – without having to physically put it on.

Signage for Fashion Retail with Merson

Here at Merson Group, we know that fashion retail signage is about much more than the sign above the door; it’s about creating an experience. That’s why, with our clients, we use signage to create retail spaces that completely immerse customers in their unique brand identity.
As well as external signage, Merson can provide ceiling rafts, feature walls, light features, large format and digital walls. We have our own cladding company, CGL Facades, to create stand-out store facades and Merson Digital to manufacture and deliver end-to-end digital signage solutions and
services.

We’ve worked with high street names and international fashion retailers such as TK Maxx to give their stores a whole new look and feel through the power of creative, strategic signage. From bespoke LED feature signs to eye-catching 2D and 3D wall treatments, we love to think outside the box and do everything in-house. Using virtual reality, we’re even able to show you how your store could look with various design choices. This means you can envision what your customers will see as they walk through the door. What better way to carefully curate the look and feel of your store?

So, interested to learn how Merson Group could help your fashion retail business? Book a virtual
reality demo at enquiries@mersongroup.com